Barcelona rule out January loan exit for La Masia teenage prodigy | OneFootball

Although it has been quite some time since Marc Bernal returned to full fitness at Barcelona, his involvement in the first team has been pretty limited so far.

Even with injuries and niggles to star midfielders Pedri and Frenkie de Jong this season, Bernal has mustered only 120 minutes of competitive action so far.

This led to speculation earlier in the day that Barcelona might be looking to replicate the Eric Garcia strategy by loaning Bernal out in the upcoming January transfer window.

It must be remembered that Garcia was loaned out to Girona, where he was able to find his mojo, and he came back as a much more complete individual.’

Reports had suggested that Barça could look for the same with Bernal, recognising that the youngster does require more regular game-time.

Bernal wants to play more often for Barcelona. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Barcelona want to keep hold of Bernal

However, according to Mundo Deportivo, it appears that Barcelona are not too keen on offloading Bernal in the January transfer window and a loan move has been ruled out.

The youngster, despite his lack of game time and interest from Girona, is considered a key player in the Barcelona setup, especially heading into the second half of the season.

Indeed, the Catalans believe Bernal’s services could be useful after the turn of the year, when the schedule becomes even more unforgiving, thanks to the Super Cup and the Copa del Rey.

So far this season, Barcelona have been cautious with Bernal as they do not want him to aggravate his condition and spend another long spell on the sidelines.

But as the year comes to a close, Bernal is improving bit by bit, and the club are hopeful he will get a lot more action during the second half of the campaign.